


Thank You

by gammaray



Category: DRAMAtical Murder
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, First Meetings, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gift Fic, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Pen Pals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-26
Updated: 2014-01-26
Packaged: 2018-01-09 09:45:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1144502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gammaray/pseuds/gammaray
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You both stop where you're standing, you near the baggage claim and him by the exit. He drops his carry on by his feet and you dart forward before you can stop yourself, him meeting you halfway with a sprint of his own. The height difference is something you'll worry about later, forgotten for now when strong arms wrap around your waist and spin you around the baggage claim area. You wrap your arms tightly around his neck, face buried into his shoulder as you hold back the tears. Granny had teased you about crying on your first meeting, but you thought she was just kidding.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thank You

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ryamas.tumblr.com](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=ryamas.tumblr.com).



> i finished this early, but coni insisted i wait until our one-month friend anniversary. it's safe to say this has been sitting in my drafts

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

wakey wakey eggs and bakey its like 2am over there shouldnt you be awake by now 

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

dude seriously i promised id wake you at 2am and now its 3am what happened to our movie night 

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

yahoo 

**Seragaki <aobanana@anet.ne.jp>**  
 _to ihrereplik_

I can’t always wake up when you’re awake, you know. I had a long day at work. 

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

haha weenie 

**Seragaki <aobanana@anet.ne.jp>**  
 _to ihrereplik_

Says Mr. Unemployed. 

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

ouch watch it

**Seragaki <aobanana@anet.ne.jp>**  
 _to ihrereplik_

I’m only speaking the truth.

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

ok ok whatever lets watch the movie

You run a hand through your hair as your eyes adjust to the brightness of your laptop screen despite toying with the settings, squinting as you attempt to wake up. The persistent binging from your pen pal continues to flash amidst the tabs open in your taskbar, alerting you of four messages from your chat server. The only reason you had responded to any of his emails was because they immediately sent to your phone, which was close to vibrating off your nightstand with how many messages he had sent you while you were asleep. It was a little after eleven at night, patience running low. He finishes his online classes by ten and spends at least fifteen minutes waking you from your nap via email, his messages getting choppier the longer you take.

 **ihrereplik:** earth to seragaki  
 **ihrereplik:** seragaki do you copy  
 **aobanana:** I’m here.  
 **ihrereplik:** what movie are we watching today  
 **aobanana:** I thought it was your turn.  
 **ihrereplik:** no i think it was yours  
 **aobanana:** Are you sure?  
 **ihrereplik:** whatever i wanna watch more anime  
 **aobanana:** Nevermind. I’ll choose.  
 **ihrereplik:** oh no dude come on 

You rest your forehead on your desk, eyebrows furrowed. The computer lets off another few alerts and you plug in your headphones, glaring at the flashing tab.

 **ihrereplik:** im going to open up eva  
 **aobanana:** No.  
 **ihrereplik:** please  
 **aobanana:** No! 

For the past few days, the two of you have spent your free time watching anime he’s found over the week, whether it be new or old. He's already seen all of these and so have you, and yet he continuously insists you watch it with him. Whatever floats his boat, right? 

**ihrereplik:** youre such a buzzkill  
 **ihrereplik:** oh wow is this eva that is open  
 **ihrereplik:** haha seragaki look  
 **aobanana:** It better not be Eva.  
 **ihrereplik:** lmao  
 **aobanana:** Dammit, Haas. 

A glare is directed at your screen, but it softens. You can't be too angry at him. He's your friend. He hasn't done anything bad, so what reason do you have to be rude? Exactly. 

It's only been a couple years since you started talking, but his Japanese is amazing. He insists he's terrible when he speaks, but you've yet to work up the courage to speak to him aloud. Even though Haas says it's fine, you feel bad. You started talking to him in order to help his communication skills in your native tongue, but you ended up as best friends and spend every minute of your free time online with him. 

And that's more than fine. 

When you first began talking to him, he introduced himself as Haas. You traded first and last names, but he said he didn't want to immediately go to a first name basis. That was fine with you. It was cute, really. Two years later, you're still referring to one another by last name. Haas says the time will come when he wants to call you Aoba, and when he wants you to call him Noiz. 

There's something about his first name that makes you squirm a bit. It's not because it's uncomfortable, no. His name is fun to say out loud, although you'd never tell him that. You assume his online course has made it clear that last names are the default normality, but two years is plenty of time to switch to first names. Maybe it's a German thing. 

**ihrereplik:** you didnt fall asleep did you  
 **ihrereplik:** omg you totally did  
 **ihrereplik:** what the hell i thought youd be wired with coffee by now  
 **aobanana:** I'm here.  
 **aobanana:** I didn't feel like bringing my laptop out to the kitchen incase I woke Granny, so I disappeared momentarily to get coffee.  
 **ihrereplik:** yeah please do the world a favor and drink coffee before this movie starts  
 **aobanana:** Why?  
 **ihrereplik:** apocalypse 

Stifling a laugh behind your hand, you change tabs to the movie he's invited you to, the lagging green cursor near the movie telling you he's ready to go. Your own blue cursor appears and he knocks his against yours. Grinning widely, you shake your wireless mouse to get him back, covering your mouth again to quiet your laughter. 

**ihrereplik:** wait 

Another tab opens and you read the text, eyebrows furrowed. You swear you've misread it, but a third reading of the same text and you're surprised. 

**_Haas is calling you._**  
 **Audio** | **Video**

You swallow nervously, glancing back at the chat server. He hasn't said anything yet. 

**Audio** | **VIDEO**

Two small windows pop up and you immediately mute the microphone, eyes wide. Your webcam flickers and you see yourself in the window below the one with the black screen. Your desk lamp makes your hair look worse than before, bed-head causing your hair to stick up in odd places. All you did was tie your hair up in a loose ponytail. 

The black window above yours glitches a few times and a loading sign appears in the middle of it, the pixels coming together as the connection is made. You fidget with your shirt, suddenly self-conscious. The last time you saw Haas was a picture he sent you when his class first began, blond and short with a piercing on his right eyebrow. His eyes were a bright green but he looked bored. He said it was a picture taken a year before the program began. So how much different is he now? 

The loading bar disappears and your eyes immediately search around the small window, your awe appearing in your webcam's view. You don't care right now. He was sixteen in that picture. A part of you hopes he's changed some, but another part wishes to keep the picture you have pinned to your bulletin board. That's what he's always looked like in your eyes. Change isn't terrible, but you don't know how much you can take. 

The silver decorating his face is what makes you pull back from your desk in shock, lips parted in a small 'O'. Deciding to linger on those later, you search his emerald eyes through the grainy quality of his webcam, eyebrows knitted together over them. His hair is messier than in the picture you have, and yet it fits him more than you'd like to admit. You think he's gotten paler. 

He opens his mouth to speak but all you see are his lips moving. His microphone must be off too. You arch an eyebrow and he shakes his head, a smug glint in his eyes. What the hell? 

**aobanana:** How many piercings are there?  
 **ihrereplik:** i stopped counting after 10 

Haas doesn't remove his gaze from his screen as he responds, the look he had given you replaced with one of neutrality. This is a little surreal. 

**ihrereplik:** arent you like 40 

You shout to yourself, glaring at your webcam. Haas' lips twitch up and his shoulders shake, indicating that he finds it humorous. _Cute,_ you think, immediately grimacing at your own thoughts. 

**aobanana:** I'm 23!  
 **aobanana:** Brat.  
 **ihrereplik:** you still cant take a joke  
 **ihrereplik:** waaaaah  
 **ihrereplik:** go take a nap, grandpa  
 **aobanana:** I'm going back to sleep.  
 **ihrereplik:** jfc it was another joke  
 **aobanana:** Sure it was. 

Haas makes pistols with his fingers and grins, the light of his bedroom lamp glinting off of a few piercings on his right eyebrow. _So he added more there too, huh._ He drops them after a moment of getting you to laugh, gesturing towards something before returning to his keyboard. 

**ihrereplik:** eva is done buffering lets go 

***

"Thank you for your hard work today, Aoba-kun!" 

You laugh weakly at Haga-san's enthusiasm, peering over your shoulder to watch him leave. It was your week to lock up Heibon, which meant you'd be home later than Granny would like. Stifling a soft yawn, you walk out to the back of the room and begin inventory, tapping your pen against your chin absently. Work was slow as usual, what with it being a busy week for Haas. More doctor appointments meant more tests, so it was estimated he was to be out of commission for most of the week. You briefly recall his complaints before he was taken to his hospital room. 

_**ihrereplik:** it would be really great if i could move out already jfc_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** oh but noooo_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** i just HAD to fail freshman year_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** i didnt even know i had to do work_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** tbh i thought my parents gave up on my education and thats my excuse_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** ok but seriously i gotta get going_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** i should be back by thursday or something idk_

Despite insisting school was a subject he didn't enjoy discussing, Haas tended to rant to you while you were asleep. You think he intentionally sends it to the chat so your phone doesn't wake you up, but that could just be your imagination. Whatever it was, Haas visited the hospital on a monthly basis and sometimes spent up to a week there. Although he says it has to do with something he was born with and it isn't affecting him health-wise, you're still going to worry. 

_**ihrereplik:** she has nothing better to do with dads money so she wastes it on pointless tests_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** i feel like a fucking lab rat_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** i have a countdown on my computer for how many more days i have to stay in this shithole_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** is that enough proof that i hate it here_

You nearly drop a box of spare parts onto your foot, fumbling to grab at the bottom in order to catch it. With a sigh of relief, you gingerly push the cardboard box into its slot, frowning. Letting your mind drift was always a terrible idea, and yet you still did it anyway. Haas was your best friend after all, and him being away for a week wasn't a good sign. You head over to your bag to grab your notebook and keys, pausing when a familiar alert from your bag's side pocket echoes off the walls. 

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

discharged sooner than i thought 

**Haas <ihrereplik@kanin.de>**  
 _to me_

movie night? 

***

Video calls become a regular thing between you and Haas, microphones muted and laughter visible through the trembles of shoulders. Much to your delight, Haas has begun smiling more than the first time you used your webcams. He has a nice smile. A _very_ nice smile. You wonder if he had braces at one point. 

**ihrereplik:** haha youre doing it again  
 **aobanana:** Doing what?  
 **ihrereplik:** smiling to yourself when nothing has happened 

You catch yourself grinning at your lamp and furiously shake your head, cheeks warming with the embarrassment. This guy was too observant. 

**ihrereplik:** loser  
 **aobanana:** I'll send you that image again if I have to.  
 **ihrereplik:** the one with the guy sitting by himself  
 **aobanana:** Yes.  
 **aobanana:** That's you. 

Haas is kind enough to give you the middle finger, smirking the entire time. His headphones are placed over the bird's nest he calls hair, the two piercings below his lower lip shifting here and there. He has a habit of moving them with his tongue without even meaning to. An absent thing, maybe? It could even be an unconscious effort. 

And you call _him_ the observant one. 

**ihrereplik:** wait 

He removes his headphones and walks away from his webcam, leaving you hanging and unaware. Haas isn't gone for long, but he doesn't explain when he comes back. 

**aobanana:** ??? 

Emerald eyes glance at the webcam for a split second and immediately look away, thick eyebrows furrowed. You hover over your keys, prepared to send him several more question marks, but there's a click and you hear something through your headphones. Haas opens his mouth. 

"I want to be your boyfriend." 

Your mouth opens and closes at least four times before you stop trying to speak, background noise a distraction from your memory attempting to replay the voice from the other end. It was unbelievably fluent, and there was no way that could've been a mistake. With shaky hands, you reach for your settings and turn on your microphone. 

"Okay." 

***

**aobanana:** Not even now that we're dating? 

It's a nice word. Dating. Partners. In a relationship. Hand in hand. Partners in crime. Together. Lovers. 

You look down and worry your lip, adjusting your webcam here and there. Haas is almost finished with his work, so your video call will start soon. His replies are as quick as can be even though he's immersed in his work—he's begun doing two days worth of school per day, insisting he finish his senior year as soon as he can—and sometimes he writes out a whole paragraph to you on his current thoughts. It's cute. 

**ihrereplik:** youll understand later  
 **aobanana:** But I want to understand now.  
 **ihrereplik:** ok ok just wait until im finished  
 **aobanana:** :^/  
 **ihrereplik:** aw come on dont give me that  
 **ihrereplik:** im trying my best  
 **aobanana:** Just finish your work and then I'll bother you about it. 

A bubble beneath his messages pops up to tell you he's in the middle of responding, and you quickly type out a continuation. 

**aobanana:** Without messaging me! 

It ceases and you smirk at his 'Away' status, flipping through your playlist to pass the time. 

_**aobanana:** What about college?_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** college?_  
 _ **aobanana:** This is your last year of high school courses. Aren't you signed up for college? A university? Something?_  
 _ **ihrereplik:** not really_  
 _ **aobanana:** Haas..._

With a soft _blip!_ , Haas returns to an available status. You click on your chat server quicker than you'd like to admit. 

**ihrereplik:** no movie tonight 

You frown, mood deflating. You always watched a movie at least once a week. He was gone all last week, so you had hoped he would be up for one as soon as possible. 

**aobanana:** ?  
 **aobanana:** Are you okay?  
 **ihrereplik:** im fine 

**_Haas is calling you._**  
 **Audio** | **Video**

You immediately accept the video call, fidgeting with the collar of your sweater. Haas looks tense despite the blank look on his face, avoiding glancing at you. With a sigh, you adjust your headphones so you can speak better into your microphone. 

"Haas?" 

He visibly swallows and looks up, holding something in his hand. Paper? More than one. Papers? "I can turn these back in for another time or if you don't like the idea at all." Haas prods at the papers in his hand, frowning. "But uh. I got them in the mail today and..." The blond raises the papers up to his webcam and you wait for it to focus, squinting. 

His tense behavior is more worrying than usual, squirming here and there in his desk chair. Your concern is going to spike right through the roof if he doesn't explain soon. Instead of fretting about it, you pick up your phone and fiddle with the buttons, absently tapping characters onto the screen. It's in German, so you don't bother dealing with the eyestrain. "I can't see what it says. Read it to me?" 

Haas shoots you a look akin to 'are you kidding me' but it drops quickly. He takes the... ah, _tickets_ back and holds them out so he can read them. He looks like he's considering saying it out loud, but sighs heavily. With the tickets on his desk, he looks up at you. "It's a roundtrip to Tokyo. I leave in a week." 

Barking startles you out of your daze, paws prodding at your thigh. You hiss out a curse and pick Ren up, running your fingers through his fur to calm him down. His barking quiets down and he curls up in your lap, whining. "Sorry, sorry." Upon inspection, you see you've dropped your phone. No wonder Ren had freaked out. When you look back up, you notice Haas looks conflicted. You bite down on your tongue and sigh through your nose, eyebrows furrowed. "I— Are you serious?" 

"100%." He holds his tickets up to the webcam and you make out enough to see it's a legitimate ticket. "Roundtrip. This is not a joke. Look, you... you don't have to let it happen. I can turn them back in. Money isn't a problem so—" 

"Haas." 

He shuts up immediately, visibly prodding at the backing of his piercings with his tongue. Haas' gaze drops down to the tickets in his hand. "Yeah?" 

"I'll see you in a week." 

***

**ihrereplik:** im on a plane  
 **ihrereplik:** a very cramped plane  
 **ihrereplik:** ive never been outside the country before  
 **ihrereplik:** ive never been outside of berlin, really  
 **ihrereplik:** i rarely leave my house idk how to feel about this  
 **ihrereplik:** omg  
 **ihrereplik:** whats going on why is there screaming  
 **ihrereplik:** what the fuck no one told me there would be babies on this trip  
 **ihrereplik:** i want a refund 

You laugh into your arm to muffle it, grinning widely at your computer. It's a miracle you've managed to sit yourself down long enough to check your messages. For the last two days, you've spent your free time chatting with him on video while you clean your room, thankful for wireless gamer headphones. When Haas had said he enjoyed watching you, your response was a glare, but you belatedly realized he was being sincere. _That_ was embarrassing. 

To your surprise, Granny hadn't been against Haas' visit. If anything, she was relieved. 

_"Ah? Isn't that your pen pal? I'm surprised you haven't invited him over until now."_

_"He's... not exactly_ just _my pen pal anymore?"_

_"And my name is Tae. Yes, thank you Captain Obvious. I'm not a moron. I know lovestruck when I see it."_

**ihrereplik:** SHUT UP SHUT THESE BABIES UP  
 **ihrereplik:** im going to scream 

You recall the little happy dance he did on camera the other day when he finished his courses, shouting something in German and falling back onto his bed. He was more relieved than anything, finally finished with his schooling. You knew how that worked. 

**ihrereplik:** i didnt pay for internet just to have a oneway conversation  
 **aobanana:** Spaced out. Sorry.  
 **ihrereplik:** you were probably cleaning  
 **aobanana:** For once, I wasn't.  
 **ihrereplik:** im actually surprised wtf are you just sitting at your computer now  
 **aobanana:** I don't need to leave for the airport for another hour.  
 **aobanana:** I'd already be there if there wasn't a chance Granny would tease me for being so eager. 

Admitting it would usually be embarrassing, but it was the wholehearted truth. Despite her age, Granny could be worse than you were in your rebellious days. You tap a pencil against the desk as you await his response, free hand combing fingers through a sleeping Ren's fur. 

**ihrereplik:** thats cute  
 **ihrereplik:** youre cute  
 **ihrereplik:** im gay  
 **aobanana:** Yes you are.  
 **ihrereplik:** shot through the heart and youre to blame 

Conversation with Haas passes an hour by quickly, watching a few online videos with him. He refused to use a webcam, stating something about weddings and surprises. You rolled your eyes and let him have his way. If you were on a plane for that long, you'd be in your pajamas, so you don't blame him for turning down a video call. 

The bus ride to the airport feels like hours even though it's only about half an hour, clutching your phone in your hand. You haven't received any emails yet, but that means Haas could be landing soon. You check the email he forwarded you at least ten times to make sure you were in the right place. 

The speakers overhead announce a plane arrival and you swallow the lump forming in your throat. Your hands are feeling clammy and it's irritating. You can't lose it already. He isn't even here yet. Calm down. 

A couple people make their way out of the exit and you freeze up, searching frantically for a familiar pierced face. Haas said something about metal detectors, but promised he'd put them back in once he got on the plane. (You've seen him with his piercings off once or twice. He had laid down with his laptop after a particularly long day of testing, piercings discarded on his nightstand and bleary eyes watching you with a lazy grin. Seeing him so relaxed was refreshing.) 

A break between the first couple and the automatic doors open again, bringing in a few more people. You worry your lip and remove your hands from your jacket pocket, gaze wandering everywhere for blond hair and green eyes and a sly smile— and there he is. 

You both stop where you're standing, you near the baggage claim and him by the exit. He drops his carry on by his feet and you dart forward before you can stop yourself, him meeting you halfway with a sprint of his own. The height difference is something you'll worry about later, forgotten for now when strong arms wrap around your waist and spin you around the baggage claim area. You wrap your arms tightly around his neck, face buried into his shoulder as you hold back the tears. Granny had teased you about crying on your first meeting, but you thought she was just kidding. 

"Holy shit." His voice is as deep as it had seemed through your webcam dates, much clearer without the grainy quality of long distance. Haas is a lot less composed than he had insisted he would be. You're not much better. "Holy shit... Aoba, Aoba, Aoba..." 

Hearing your name on his lips makes you feel warm all over, stifling a sob into his jacket. Haas— no, _Noiz_ holds you tighter, encouraging you to wrap your legs around his waist so he can hold you tighter. You clutch at the material on his back, laughing shakily while you cry. "Noiz," you choke out, grinning weakly into his neck at the way his name rolls off your tongue. "Oh my god, _Noiz_..." 

The two of you stay where you are for another few minutes, clinging onto one another. Noiz pulls back enough to look at you properly, emerald eyes wide with awe. You see your reflection in them and realize you're the same. A nervous giggle escapes your lips and he muffles it with his own mouth. 

Your hands move from his shoulders to his hair, grasping at strands of golden locks as you kiss him firmly. Noiz shakes beneath your grip, keeping you up with his hands around your waist. Once parted, you lean your forehead against his and lock golden with green, jaw aching with how hard you're smiling. The smile he gives in return is the best thing you've seen and you kiss him again. 

**ihrereplik:** thank you for existing

**Author's Note:**

> to coni: thank you so much for existing.


End file.
